1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is for an electronic sign, and more specifically, is for an electronic sign having vertically face panel doors.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Most existing prior art front access full matrix signage used large single panel top hinged lift face panels that were ungainly and awkward to open and close, difficult to seal against the elements, insects and the like, as well as involving an inordinate amount of time to gain access thereinto. Another concern is for the safety of technicians where support of a horizontally attached large heavy panel over the area where technicians are working on the display can be in danger if the support structural integrity is compromised. Other prior art devices used displays with multiple vertically hinged doors, but the pixels spacing at the vertical seams between doors was excessive due to large gaps between panels that allowed the doors to pivot open without incurring mutual door interference at adjacent door edges. Weather sealing provided by this design was very poor as the weather seals were small and thin in order to promote close juxtaposition of pixels from door-to-door.
Other prior art devices used horizontal panels that only allowed for partial (line) LED matrix to be displayed. Because of the space required for hinges and brackets between the panels, full matrix displays larger then a few feet tall were not possible.
Other prior art devices utilized a panel the size of the whole display face that was horizontally hinged across the top which, because of shear size, was difficult to properly weather seal. The large size of panel also required the use of gas shocks and/or several technicians to aid in lifting the panel out of place for access. Such a device also typically used a large piece of polycarbonate sheet across the entire face of the viewing area. In the present invention, the large piece of polycarbonate sheet is replaced by smaller pieces behind the multiple viewing hole face sheet but in front of the LED (light emitting diode) modules in each of the manageable multiple vertically hinged face panel doors. If a face panel is damaged by a projectile or in some other manner, it can be easier and more cost effective to repair a smaller face panel component compared to repair or placement of a much larger face panel.
Other signage using vertical hinges included large gaps in the LED matrix due to the interceding projecting structure of the hinge hardware. These gaps forced the pixel pitch to increase noticeably between face panels on all but the largest pixel pitches. These gaps were used so that the adjacent face panels could open and close without interference. The present invention overcomes such a problem by the suitable placement of the hinge pivot axis and by the use of face panel doors having parallelogram cross sections in order that a very minimal gap can be used.
The present invention allows for a quick, easy and safe way to access the sign, to seal the sign, and to provide for continuous viewing of LED pixels made possible by minimum sized gaps between adjacent LED display matrixes.